A Lesson In Lecanoscopy
by veggietales
Summary: After Kurt falsely accuses Rachel of homophobia, she gets sent to St Bruno's, and is assigned Ms. Quinn Fabray as her personal coach.
1. Chapter 1

**_I need to get back into the habit of writing more often, so I thought doing a bit of Fan Fiction might be fun._**

**_Anyway, have a good one, kids._**

* * *

"You do realize how ridiculous this is, don't you, Mr. Figgins?"

"Yes, Mr. Berry, but the decision is not mine to make, it is Mr. Hummel's, and as of yet, he is sticking to his story."

Usually in situations like this, I would just call daddy and tell him to sort it out, but he's in Phoenix on a work trip so he's pretty much useless at the moment. My second option is to cry, but by the look on papa's face, I don't think it would do much good. So, instead, I go for my third option and, making sure to give Figgins the angriest scowl I could muster up, I storm out. The plan was to slow down and wait for papa when I turned the corner, but clearly luck was not on my side today.

"Gee, someone looks like they fell face first off the wrong side of the iniquitous hammock of homophobia."

Biting back a retort, I narrow my eyes at Santana and carry on walking.

"Hey Berry, I'm not finished yet. Get back here."

I quicken my pace. The last thing I need right now is to get into an argument with Santana Lopez. Instead, I resolve to wait for papa at the car.  
I wait for 10 minutes before he comes out. He flashes a smile, then climbs into the driving seat.

"Coffee?"

* * *

Kurt, Brittany and Kitty were sat in the Lima Bean when we arrived. Kitty must have spotted me as I walked in, because she quickly whispered something, leaning toward the other two, who both spun in their seats to look over at me.

_'Subtle,'_ I mutter.

Brittany smiled and waved cheerfully and I returned the gesture. I really don't understand why she hangs out with those people. They're self-righteous, shallow morons, and Brittany is...Brittany.

Smoothing my skirt down, I look toward the long queue ahead and sigh.

"I'm going to the bathroom. You know my coffee order?"

"Nonfat caramel machiatto with soya milk. We come in here all the time, Rachel, they probably have our orders pinned to the wall under a shrine of the seven billion Instagram pictures you've taken here and a monologue of that time you thought you'd seen Omar Sharif ordering a hazelnut latte."

In my defense, the man looked a lot like Omar Sharif, but I wasn't going to argue, because it is common knowlege that the only person that can out-argue Rachel Berry is Hiram Berry. Instead, I roll my eyes and head toward the bathroom.

I hate public toilets. They always smell terrible and god knows who's been sat on the seats. I wrinkle my nose as I walk in and perch my handbag on the side, rooting through in search of my cell phone. It takes several minutes, as my bag consists of everything that I may need during the day, including a small first aid kit, sheet music for _I'd Rather Be Blue Over You _from Funny Girl, and mango scented hand sanitizer that I will no doubt be using after I've left the bathroom, because statistics show that 33% of Americans don't wash their hands after using the rest room and I cannot afford to compromise my health at any point if I want to get the part of Maria in the school production of _West Side Story_.

When I eventually find my cell, I find that I have 3 messages.

[From Blaine]: Hey Rach! I just heard about what happened! Sam and Mike are at my house. You should come! x

[From Blaine]: Also, we have an awesome idea for a number to perform for Glee Club. x

[From Daddy]: heard what happened. will b bk by tomorrow. love u xx

I swiftly reply to Blaine, telling him I will be there at about 6, and also to remind him that my microphone is already at his house. I tell daddy that he doesn't have to come home early, and that papa and I have got it under control.

I slip my cell back into my bag, run my hand through my hair and leave the restroom. I find papa sat at our usual table, flicking through some sheets of paper.

"Daddy text me saying that he's coming home early."

Papa nods and tears his eyes away from the page as I sit down. I look at the sheets of paper and see my name printed in bold letters.

"Kurt put in a formal complaint, Rachel. He said that you have two options," he sighs heavily before continuing, "you can have it go down on your school record and give up your part in the school play-"

"He can't do that!"

Several people turn around, including a smirking Kurt Hummel. I make a start to go over to his table, but papa grabs my hand.

"The second option is that you attend an anti-homophobia camp for 3 weeks. It won't go on your record, and you can still be part of the play."

Groaning, I hide my head in my hands. I don't want to be surrounded by homophobes for 3 weeks, but I can't have a homophobia complaint on my school record if I want to get into NYADA.

* * *

After spending the next 20 minutes wallowing in a miserable silence, papa and I left the Lima Bean. When we got home, I text Blaine to tell him I am just about to leave and shout to my papa that I will be back by 11.

Blaine's house is amazing. It's one of those ridiculously beautiful homes that looks more like a fairytale castle than a house. His family are lovely too. His mom brings us snacks and things, and when Cooper's here, he helps us with our acting skills. Renley, Blaine's twin brother, is really sweet, too. He and Blaine are the same in almost every way, except that Renley doesn't use much gel in his hair, and he is way better at painting than Blaine, but not quite as good a singer. The only exception to my love for the Andersons is their father. Mr Anderson is not a nice person, but he spends a lot of his time away on business trips nowadays, so it's not as bad as it used to be.

As I walk up the drive, I can hear people shouting in the back yard, so I change courses and open the side gate.

"Damn it Rachel, I thought you were Blaine!"

I cock my head and frown at Renley who is kneeling behind an overturned table in what looks like full army gear. I quickly shrug it off and jump over the table to sit beside him. Often it's best just to go along with this sort of thing.

He takes the army jacket off and places it over my shoulders, muttering something about 'blue team'. I nod along and accept the goggles and gun he hands to me, finally realizing that have just arrived half way through a full-blown paintball game. Renley tells me that we are on the Green team with Jake Puckerman and a guy called Hunter Clarington. Blaine, Mike, Sam and Wes are on the Blue team.  
The two of us crawl to the side of the house, careful to check any of the usual hiding places before we spot Sam lounging around by the side of the summerhouse.

"Sam is almost always used as a diversion because he's the worst shooter ever," Renley whispers, "so the rest of the team are most probably hidden around him."

I hear a small chuckle from behind and groan, before trying to cover as much of my body as humanely possible with the army jacket, but no shots come. I turn around to see Blaine giving us his best "I absolutely kicked your ass" smirk. It was a look I had seen far too many times.

"You're getting better, little brother, but you need to remember to watch your back," he threw his gun to the floor and hugged me quickly before flashing me a smile, "Hey Rach!"

I say hello and wave to the others. Jake and Hunter came out of hiding looking a little pissed, but soon cheered up when Renley suggested ordering pizza. The rest of the group agreed, shouting out different pizza orders and starting towards the house.

"So what happened today?" Blaine asked inquisitively.

I shrugged, not really wanting to go into the details, but Jake felt the need to answer the question on my behalf.

"Rachel kicked Hummel's ass!"

"Yeah, I heard you broke 2 of his ribs!"

I looked incredulously at Mike.

"I did nothing of the sort! He was being mean to one of the freshmen girls, so I just kind of...hit him."

I did actually break his nose, but we can just omit that minor detail.

"So what did Figgins say? Detention? Suspension?"

I explained what my papa told me, and Renley and Blaine shared a glance before snorting with laughter. It didn't take long for the rest of them to join in.

"It's not funny! I don't know what to do!" I try to fill my voice with indignation, but truth is, I was struggling not to laugh myself. I mean, it was really quite ridiculous.

"You're going to have to go to the camp. The only other shoe-in for the role of Maria is Kitty and she's way too difficult to work with. She called me a neophyte the other day because I messed up a high F," Blaine huffed and crossed his arms.

* * *

One terribly made movie about alien clowns, and 8 pizzas later, everyone began to leave. I stayed behind to help clear up the mess that the others had made, and naturally, conversation led back to my 'punishment'.

"Can he do that? I mean, legally?"

I shrug and throw another empty coke can into the trash.

"I guess so. Papa read though the document he gave us and can't find any loop holes, and no-one will come forward to admit that I wasn't being homophobic because they're all to scared of Kurt."

"Do you know what you're going to do, then?"

I pause for a moment and clench my jaw, before answering.

"How bad do you think that camp thing would be?"

I see the sympathetic look on his face and sigh. He's about to say something, but I really just don't want to talk about it any more.

"Hey, you never told me what your 'awesome idea' was for Glee Club."

Blaine's expression brightens and he taps his nose.

"Tomorrow."


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for all the reviews and messages and such! I'm really sorry about the wait. I'm in the middle of an exam period at the moment, so updates may be quite sporadic and you'll just have to hang in there for a little while. Enjoy!**

* * *

"It's 5:30am."

"Rach, you're awake!" I groan at the obscenely chirpy voice.

"Yes. And it's 5:30am."

"You promised you'd come for a run with me!"

I raise my eyebrow, as if he could see the gesture through the phone, but push myself off the bed.

"No I didn't."

"Yeah, but you're up now. Plus, I have exciting news! I'll see you in 10."

I start to argue, but he hangs up before I open my mouth. Reluctantly, I walk over to my closet and pull out my workout clothes and I've just about tied my hair up when I hear several quiet pings on the window. I push it open and see Blaine jumping up and down on the lawn,

"Blaine," I growl in a hushed voice, "throw one more stone at my window and I swear, I will burn your entire Oscar Wilde collection."

Putting his hands on his hips, he tuts and shakes his head sorrowfully.

"Why was I born with such contemporaries?"

I laugh and close the window before throwing on a jumper and heading out, and it takes me a minute to locate Blaine who has managed to find a small ginger cat and was stroking it's stomach.  
"Please tell me that isn't your 'exciting news'..."

He grins up at me, and pushes himself up off the ground.

"Nope! I have a date!"

Okay, this is exciting news. Blaine has been perpetually single for as long as I've known him, which is pretty much forever.

"When did this happen? I was with you last night and you didn't say anything! Who is it?"

His smile widens and he pulls me along into a slow jog. I had almost forgot we were supposed to be running.

"Well, I gave him my number a little while ago because he needed help with his dancing, and then he text me last night, just after you'd left and we got talking and he asked me out!"

"So who is it?"

"Oh, just a guy. You probably won't know him," he shrugs and I say nothing for a minute, knowing that he'll tell me eventually.

"Jesse St. James."

I stop running and stare at him.

"Jesse St. James as in 3 year on/off boyfriend of Kurt Hummel?" his smile falters and he looks to the ground, "Blaine..."

"No, Rach. He and Kurt broke up for good, and they haven't spoken in like, a month. He's really nice, and nothing like Kurt, I promise."

"So what are you going to do on this date?"

"He said that it's a surprise, but he's picking me up at 6pm next Friday."

I tell him that I'm happy he's found someone that he likes, but honestly it just doesn't seem right - Kurt's boyfriend of give or take three years suddenly asking my best friend on a date just after Kurt and I had a...slight disagreement. But Blaine is a good judge of character so, as much as I don't want to trust Jesse, I want Blaine to be right.

* * *

By the time I get home, have a shower and get changed, it's 7pm. I notice that papa has left the brochure for the 'anti-homophia' camp on the coffee table and take a moment to flick through it. The place itself looks quite nice, and they have their own auditorium and recreation center. It's almost like a normal camp, but with less fun and more homophobes. Papa comes downstairs and sees me looking at the booklet.

"You're actually considering going there?" he cringes and walks over to the coffee machine.

"If I go to NYADA with a school record with a huge label saying 'homophobe' on it, they'd kick me out straight away."

He rubs his eyes and sits down on the couch opposite me.

"Maybe you should just try reasoning with Kurt," I snort but he continues, "I remember in freshman year when you guys were inseparable."

'Yeah, before he turned into a whiny, narcissistic jerk,' I think.

"Just try, Rachel. I know he's stubborn, but I'm sure if you apologize and try to make it up to him, he might rethink this."

I promise him that I will try, though I highly doubt that it'll help. I grab my keys off the counter and head out.

"Why are you here Renley, shouldn't you be in Dalton?" I frown down at his blue and red check shirt and rolled up pants.

"Dalton have finished for the term. I came to help with the performance," he nods towards Blaine, who returns the gesture and wraps his arm around my shoulder, pushing me gently in the direction of the main entrance.

"Did you hear about Jake and Marley?"

I shake my head. I barely know Marley – she's in Glee club, but she's the year below, the same as Jake, but he's forever talking about her.

"He finally asked her out, but she said no. I think perhaps she believes he's going to turn out like Puck."

I roll my eyes.

"Puck isn't that bad. Sure, he...got around a bit, but he's calmed down a lot now."

"Maybe you should talk to her."

I nod, and allow him to lead me into the auditorium. There are quite a few people on the stage, including Kurt and his lackeys. Renley runs over and takes my hand, leading me up the stairs to the stage as Blaine goes behind the curtain.

"Ready for a showdown?" Renley smirks at me.

A small group of boys walk in the middle of the two crowds that had gathered at either side of the stage. One of them, who I recognize to be Hunter, the guy that was at Blaine's house yesterday, steps forward.

"Okay guys, we've been informed that there is some...hostility between some of you, so Blaine thought it would be a good idea to let off some steam. First, some ground rules. When the Warblers sing, anyone that knows the lyrics to the tune may sing, but you must respect the other group and not try to overpower them whilst they're singing, though you may turn it into a duet. Also, Brittany felt it necessary to ask me to impose a strict non-violence policy," everybody looked over to Brittany who was grinning to herself, "if 10 seconds go by without anyone singing, we switch to a new one. Everyone gets a song."

With that, he stepped back and clicked his fingers three times, at which the Warblers burst into song. Santana was the first person to step forward, twirling around Kurt in order to do so. She strutted up to the row of people at my end of the stage and began to sing.

"_Hate is a strong word, but I really, really, really don't like you__. Now that it's over__, I don't even know what I liked about you__. Brought you around and you just brought me down__. Hate is a strong word, but I really, really, really don't like you__. I really don't like you._"

The beat suddenly changed, and I watched as Renley laughed and quickly jumped in front of Santana to stop her from walking back to the group. He danced along to the beat until the start of the next bar then began singing directly to Santana.

"_I don't really know you, and I don't think I want to, but I think I can fake it if you can. And let's agree there's no need, no more talk of money. Let's just keep pretending to be friends,_" Santana smirked and squared up to Renley, and for a moment, I thought she might hit him, but instead, she began to sing with him, and their voices went surprisingly well together, "_I get carried away, carried away from you, and I'm hoping and I'm praying. Cause I'm sorry, sorry about that, sorry about the things that I said. Always let it get to my head._"

The pair looked quite disappointed when the Warblers switched songs, and sauntered back to their retrospective groups. Laughing, I listened for the next song, which was actually one I knew, but if I knew the Warblers like I think I do, they'll do a Broadway number, which I'd be much better at. Instead, I watched Kitty swan forward and swipe her finger along our row, stopping when she got to Jake.

"_And I can see you years from now in a bar, talking over a football game. With that same big loud opinion but nobody's listening. Washed up and ranting about the same old bitter things. Drunk and rumbling on about how I can't sing. But all you are is mean. All you are is mean, and a liar, and pathetic, and alone in life, and mean, and mean, and mean, and mean_."

I looked around at the surprised faces all directed at Jake, then to the boy himself, who looked to be the most shocked of everyone. He was about to say something when the Warblers changed the song and Blaine stepped forward quickly and began to sing, grabbing Brittany's hand and spinning her around.

"_Now where's your picket fence love? And where's that shiny car? And did it ever get you far? You never seemed so tense love. I've never seen you fall so hard. Do you know where you are? And truth be told I miss you, and truth be told I'm lying_."

Jake pounced into action when he heard the next song start, and Mike joined him, the two dancing in such a strange unison that if you'd never seen them do it before, you'd think that they'd prepared the performance weeks in advance.

"_And I, get sick when I'm around, I, can't stand to be around, I, hate everything about you! Everything about you, everything about you, everything about you! Some say I've got a bad attitude, but that don't change the way I feel about you, and if you think this might be bringing me down, look again 'cause I ain't wearing no frown_."

I didn't know the next tune, and looked to Kurt who seemed to be equally as perplexed, and so after ten seconds, it changed, and Kurt reluctantly stepped forward. He'd probably been waiting for the same thing as me. He walked forward a few steps, and I moved back a little, expecting him to walk over to me, but, other than a sweeping glance, he practically ignored my existence, and stormed over to where Blaine was stood. Blaine actually seemed as though he'd been preparing for this, and held his head up, maintaining eye-contact with the taller boy.

"_I wish that for just one time you could stand inside my shoes__, and just for that one moment, I could be you__. Yes, I wish that for just one time, you could stand inside my shoes, you'd know what a drag it is to see you._"

When my turn came, I recognized the song instantly. I stepped forward, debating whether to sing with Kurt or not, and decided on the former. He already hated me, so really I've got nothing to lose. Kurt seemed to have the same idea and stepped out into the center of the stage without my say so. He stood in front of me, arms crossed, and opened his mouth as though to sing, but I beat him to it.

"_What is this feeling, so sudden,and new? I felt the moment I laid eyes on you."_

"_My pulse is rushing. My head is reeling. My face is flushing."_

"_What is this feeling? Fervid as a flame, does it have a name? Yes...Loathing! Unadulterated loathing. For your face,"_

"_Your voice!"_

"_Your clothing!" _I heard Santana mutter something and Kurt sneered before we continued.

"_Let's just say- I loath it all! Every little trait how ever small makes my very flesh begin to crawl with simple utter loathing! There's a strange exhilaration. In such total detestation. It's so pure, so strong! Though I do admit, it came on fast, still I do believe that it can last. And I will be loathing, loathing you my whole life long."_

The Warblers' voices died out and the people on either side of the stage stood in silence as Kurt and I stood, glaring at each other at the center. I contemplated apologizing like papa had told me, but I couldn't do it. What was the point in apologizing for doing something when I wasn't even remotely sorry for doing it? Instead, we stared each other down for a while longer, until someone grabbed our shoulders. I only just noticed the light layer of makeup covering his nose, and bit my cheeks in an attempt to keep a straight face.

"See how good we are as a team, guys? Now we've all blown off some steam and can just chill out and get along."

Kurt snorted and swatted the hand away.

"Have a nice Summer vacation, Ru-Paul," he looked over at the person beside us, and I followed suit, seeing Blaine sporting a worried look, "You too, Anderson. Tell Jesse he knows where to find me when he gets sick of your greasy hair and your appallingly optimistic attitude."

With that, he spun around and marched out of the auditorium.

* * *

Everybody filtered out of the room quickly after Kurt's exit. The rest of the day was quite average, though every 5 minutes I had to reassure Blaine that his attitude was great, and that his hair was not greasy. He and Renley came to my house for dinner, in celebration of it being the last day of term.

Daddy was in when I got home, and he pulled me into a long hug. He smelled of cinnamon and honey. I pulled back and noticed that he wasn't wearing his suit as usual, but jeans and the patterned crew-cut sweater that I had bought him for Hanukkah. He followed my gaze and grinned down at me.

"I've been baking," he explained, then looked over at Blaine and Renley, who had seated themselves in the lounge "you guys want to try some food?"

They bounded into the kitchen and I watched as their faces lit up at the spread of food set out before us.

"It's all vegan-friendly," he added, pulling some plates out of the cupboard and handing them to us.

Blaine headed straight for the cinnamon rolls and Renley went for the cookies. I followed Renley and plucked a couple of cookie off the dish. Daddy made the most delicious cookie, but we barely got to have them anymore because he was always working.

When we had filled the plates, we sat down, daddy sitting by my side.

"Where's Hiram?"Renley asked.

"Someone booked a last-minute session because they thought that their son needed more practice on his fouetté en tournant," he rolled his eyes and bit into his slice of banana bread, "but he told me that you were going to try and make up with Kurt."

Everyone looked over at me and I blushed, "Well, I was going to, but we just, he, uh, he walked away."

Daddy smiled lightly and shook his head.

"You are so stubborn. I looked through what Figgins gave to your papa, but there's no way out of it. What's your plan?"

I told him that I was going to go to the camp, and he nodded understandingly.

"You know it begins in two days?" Shocked, I shake my head. I haven't even thought of what I'm going to take with me, or looked into what it's like there!

"I thought not. I made a point of looking at the website, and it doesn't look all bad. Everyone that attends gets partnered with a 'personal coach'. Plus, you only have to meet with the group for a little while each day, other than that you do what you want, and have full access to the facilities – including the auditorium and swimming pool."

I nod along. At least I'll be able to get quite a bit of practice without interruption.

"Your papa and I will try to visit when we can, and I guess your friends will go up a few times."

Blaine and Renley nod along enthusiastically. I smile at them and finish off my cookie.

Maybe it won't be as bad as I thought.

Or maybe it'll be worse.

* * *

**Rachel and Quinn will finally meet next chapter!**

**If you have any questions or comments, please go ahead and tell me. I love getting feedback, just try not to be _too_ mean!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Sorry for the long delay, I've been really busy and I actually ended up writing and re-writing this chapter because I wasn't sure how to portray Quinn the best. Hopefully you'll enjoy this chapter, and if not...well, I probably shouldn't have deleted the other version. Thanks for reading/commenting etc!**

* * *

My fathers and I had just got into the place when someone threw a carton of milk at our car. I had wanted to go over to the boy that did it, but papa grabbed my arm. That was one of the many things that I hated about this place, which included, but was not limited to literally everything about it.

My plan for the moment is to just ride it out without having to talk to any of my fellow 'campmates' and focusing on my vocal skills. A guy a little older than me shows us to my dorm with that horribly fake over-enthusiasm that kind of makes you want to cry. There's bad acting and then there is _**bad **_acting. Once we arrive at the dorm, I consider offering him some guidance with his acting before he left, but he swooped out before I had the chance. Instead, my parents help me sort my things out and sat on the bed either side of me.

"You know, it's not too late to drop out of the school musical."

I huff and cross my arms. I hear daddy laugh from the other side of me.

"Don't worry, Honey. We'll come visit before the end of this week, and Blaine will probably be here even sooner," he squeezes my shoulder gently and looks over to papa who was too busy frowning at the decor of the room to help with the whole 'console your traumatized daughter' thing.

"Hiram!" he laughed, and papa jumped slightly.

"I'm sorry, but this place looks like it was made for old people. Not for young homophobic...delinquents."

I hear a soft chuckle from the other side of the room and look over to see a boy spread out across a bed with his hands tucked under his head.

"You know, sir, not everyone here is a homophobic delinquent. Some of them are just...sorely miseducated," he jumped off the bed and walked over to us, leaning on the post of my bed. He had a broad Irish accent and it took me a moment to realize what he had said.

"So which are you?"

"Neither. My parents died just after I was born and I was adopted by these religious nuts who told me that homosexuality was a sin, blah blah blah. Anyway, two years ago, the social services found out, and they took my away, and brought me to America where I was put with some nicer, less manic carers. They brought me here last year and this year I just came for the hell of it. And you?"

"Neither. I slapped some guy in my school for being a jerk and he told the principal that I did it because he was gay."

The boy laughed and mussed up his dark blonde hair.

"Doc Delany," he held out his hand cordially and I shook it.

"Rachel Berry."

"So they let girls and guys stay in the same rooms here?" daddy asked, eyeing the boy suspiciously.

"Usually no. I'm guessing there are too many guys here this year. Anywho, you've no need to worry sir, your daughter is _**really**_ not my type."

Daddy nodded understandingly. "Even so. If I hear one thing about you-"

"Daddy! Be nice!"

Doc grinned and ran a hand through his hair again. "Don't worry, Mr. Berry. I'll make sure she stays out of trouble."

After a long goodbye and many other attempts from papa to get me to go home, they left and Doc and I were left alone. I unpacked my things swiftly as Doc lay on his bed whistling the tune to some 80's rock song.

"Want to go get some food before initiation?" he asked when I finished folding my clothes and putting them away into my allocated chest of drawers. I wasn't particularly hungry, but I also didn't want to sit alone in the dorm. There were still 4 unoccupied spaces in the room and I had a feeling that the others might not be quite as friendly as Doc.

"So is Doc a nickname?" I asked as we walked toward the small corner store. Doc had said that the food in the cafeteria isn't great, so it's best just to go to the store just outside of camp.

"Probably. I can't actually remember my birth name, but I remember my ma - my real ma - calling me Doc when I was a kid, so I just go by that."

Doc grabs some fruit and a bar of chocolate before we head to the counter. He glances at his watch. He tells me that we have 30 minutes until the meeting and grabs my arm, dragging me towards a small play area. He hops onto one of the swings and pats the one beside him.

"So what's your story?"

"My story?" I ask, sitting down beside him.

"Yeah. Just tell me about yourself. Summarize your life. You have one minute starting...NOW."

I jump a little and stammer a little before answering. "W-well, I live in Lima, Ohio. I'm Jewish, and a vegan. I've been dancing and singing since as long as I can remember. When I was 10 I got to play Cosette in a local performance of Les Mis. I plan on going to NYADA to do musical theatre. I'm part of McKinley Highschool's Glee club. I broke up with my boyfriend Finn last month because I realised that he was a moron. Barbra Streisand is my hero, I have a signed picture of the two of us in New York, and one day I want to play Fanny Brice in the revival of Funny Girl on Broadway. Now you go."

Doc smiles and thinks for a moment. "Okay, well you already know I'm adopted and probably guessed that I'm Irish. I learned to play piano when I was quite young and my old 'parents' made me join the church choir. When I moved in with my new family in Columbus, I stopped going to church and stuff, but I carried on singing. I've never seen Funny Girl, so I don't have a clue what you're talking about there. I love watching TV shows, and my favourite movie is A Clockwork Orange. I got to play the tree in a play when I was in primary school. Or second grade, or whatever it'd be over here."

I laugh quietly and he smiles back. We stay on the swings a while longer and chat before we get up to leave. He grabs the rest of his food before leading me to the meeting place.

There is a small group of people there when we arrive, but we are by no means the last people there. Everyone is in small groups chatting or arguing about something or another, but Doc and I sit on our own.

"Couldn't get enough, 'ey Doc?" a voice coos from behind us and when I turn around, a guy staring down at us. His blonde hair is sweeped neatly to the side and his piercing blue eyes flickered toyfully between the two of us.

"Well you are the light of my life, Damon. Oh! A suit and tie - how very dapper. Almost as if you're trying to impress someone."

Damon winked at him and then turned to face me. "Hey, I'm Damon. I'm so sorry you have to hang around with this dork for the next few weeks. Please feel free to report him if you get too annoyed. We have a room specially made for him," he shook his head and looked over at Doc sympathetically , "some people you just can't help."

"Rachel Berry. I'll keep that in mind," I laughed.

Doc sneered. "Funny man. Seriously, what's with the costume?"

"I'm not staying this year. I just came to drop my sister off and then I have a job interview."

"When you say 'sister', you mean Ellie, right? Please say yes."

"I could say yes if you want, but it wouldn't make it any less false. I don't think they'd actually let six year olds work as personal coaches."

Doc sighed and rolled his eyes. "I'm so glad I'm a guy right now."

"Whatever. She isn't _that_ bad. I gotta go now, but it was great to see you again. See you around, guys!"

We say goodbye as he turns around and leaves, and I'm about to ask him what was wrong with Damon's sister, but just as I do, a microphone cackles in front of us.

"Could everyone please take a seat? Thank you. Welcome to St. Bruno's. You are all aware of why you are here, and whilst you are here, you are under the obligation to stick to camp rules. The first rule..."

The man drools on about the rules for quite some time, but I ignore him, and look around the camp at the other members, from the preppy-looking girls down to the tattoo-sporting, leather jacket wearing biker group, and try to spot some of the people that may actually be bearable. Doc nudges me and I swiftly turn my gaze to the speaker.

"...get down to the most important things. Whilst at camp, you may have visitors as you please, and do whatever you like in the free periods, provided it is in the confines of the rule book. You will be given a personal coach with which you will be expected to work and talk and do whatever else the camp needs you to do to get the most enriching experience from your time here. Coaches will share your dorms and will be the one at the end of your time here that gives you a grade on my progress. Mr Arnolds will now read out your pairs. Remember, if you have any question or queries, please come to my office in the east block."

He points to a building to his left and moves off stage, and is replaced by a tall, thin man with glasses. He goes through the names alphabetically, starting with Katie Abbot, pairing her with Jessica Ellis, then Sam Allen with Taylor Smith, and I listen patiently for him to call out my name.

"Rachel Berry and Quinn Fabray."

I hear Doc groan next to me, and I frown at him.

"That's Damon's sister," he informs me, as if that was explanation enough.

Doc is paired with someone called Nate Brown, which he seems quite pleased about, and then we sit through the rest of the names quietly. When Mr. Arnolds has finished, everybody begins to search for their given partners in the sea of faces, but Doc and I wait. He says that it's best to wait until everyone else has found theirs before you go. I oblige, and stay seated beside him.

"So, Damon. How do you know him?"

"He was here the past two times I came. He was my coach for the first year, and we talked a lot the second year. He's a really nice guy, but unfortunately not gay. He and his girlfriend just moved in together, actually."

I nod along and begin to about Quinn, when Doc's coach finds us. He greets the boy as if they were old friends, which they probably were, an stands up to leave.

"Good luck," he says sympathetically, "I'll see you later."

When Doc had left, I realised that I hadn't actually seen Quinn, as I'd been too distracted by Doc to look up at her. I huff and bite my lip nervously, looking around for someone that looks like they might be named Quinn. I rule out the bald guy smoking in the corner, but the only other person in sight is a small Asian girl who looks kind of lost, and nothing like Damon. Sighing, I decide that it's probably best to ask the girl if she's okay, and try to get her name out of her without asking implicitly if she was Quinn Fabray. I take a few steps toward the girl before I hear someone behind me.

"Berry?"

I turn on my heels to see a tall blonde girl raising an eyebrow at me. She is pretty much an exact replica of her brother. Her hair is in loose curls and hangs lightly over her shoulders and she's wearing a cute dress covered in what looks like elephants.

"Rachel Berry?" she repeats, and I snap my eyes back up to meet hers.

"Y-yeah! You're Quinn, right?"

She purses her lips and nods to the side. "Come on, I'm meant to show you around."

I follow her around the camp as she points out various buildings, and she stops when she reaches a big square building at the edge of the campus. "Your file said that you like theatre, so you'll probably want to know where the auditorium is," she points to the building, "you wanna go inside?"

I nod, and she goes around the side to a door and holds it open. "You can have a look around if you want but for God's sake just don't break anything."

I thank her and go inside. It's a fair size for a camp auditorium, not quite as big as the one at school, but big enough. There are several microphones, and I consider asking to try one out, but Quinn looks bored enough as it is, so I just smile and decide to come back later. Once we're outside, she points out the gym and some other buildings before leading me to the cafeteria. The clock on the wall says 3 o'clock, but I'm not very hungry, so I just wait for Quinn to get some food.

"How long do I have to stay with you?" I ask, and then realize how rude it sounds.

I open my mouth to apologize and correct myself, but Quinn glares at me and I look at the ground.

"You can go if you want," she replies, and walks off before I can reply.

I leave the cafeteria and head back to my dorm. I grab my phone out of my handbag and call Renley.

_"Hey Rach! How's camp going?"_

_"Not as bad as I thought, I guess, but I've only spoken to a couple of people, and one of them hates me already."_

_"Rachel Berry! Did you criticize their singing?"_

_"No."_

_"Their dancing?"_

_"No."_

_"Their acting, fashion, taste in music, DVD collection or just their life in general?"_

_"No!"_

_"...did you tell them you were going to set fire to a beloved item of theirs?"_

_"No, Renley! I didn't do anything mean!"_

_"Well then why do they hate you?"_

_"I don't know. She just seemed kind of hostile and she barely talked and then I asked her how long I had to stay with her and she kind of took it the wrong way,"_ I shrug, even though I know he can't see me.

_"You need to work on your people skills. How about the others, are they okay?"_

_"Yeah. One of the guys in my dorm, Doc, is really nice. I think you'd get along."_

_"Doc? Like, as in doctor?"_

_"It's a nickname."_

There's a short silence on the phone, and I wait patiently. Renley can never really commit to a long phone call, so I'm used to him going off and doing random things half way through. A couple of minutes the phone is picked back up.

_"Hey Rach."_

_"Renley?"_

_"Blaine!"_

_"Oh hey Blaine. Where's Renley?"_

_"I don't know, he left his phone on the counter in the kitchen. How's it going?" _I shrug again,_ "Rachel you have to learn to talk on the phone, most people won't know when you're shrugging."_

I chuckle and apologize.

_"We'll come see you soon, okay? I have to go now, mom needs a hand with the shopping."_

I throw my phone down on the bed and run my hand through my hair.

"Hey, that's my thing," I turn around to see Doc running his hand through his hair and smiling sheepishly, "how was your date with the devil child?"

"She hates me."

"Don't take it personally," he shrugs, jumping on my bed, "she hates everybody."

* * *

**You'll get to see a lot more of Quinn next chapter, and basically every chapter after this. Thank you for sticking with this!**

**Ps. ****I didn't spell-check very thoroughly because I just wanted it uploaded and whatnot, so i****f there are any spelling errors or anything...just, I don't know, hit me or something. **


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I really don't know why it took me so long to update this. I don't even have an excuse, I'm just a bit of an arse. Sorry.**

* * *

Thankfully, Quinn didn't come back until after I had gone to sleep. If there is one thing that _definitely_ is not my forte, it's apologizing. I'm stubborn, and there is no point in denying it. And even if I apologize to the girl, something tells me she isn't exactly the most forgiving person. So, instead, I spent the majority of the morning walking to a Starbucks that I had seen a few miles down the road, and trying to think of a way to say '_please don't kill me' _in a way that didn't involve me being in a 5 mile radius of the blonde. That, however, failed miserably, when the best idea I could come up with was an apologetic card.  
It also didn't help that she woke up at 7am. I had pegged her as a lie-in type of girl, and so you can imagine my surprise when I returned to the dorm to find Quinn sat cross-legged on her bed, pouting at her phone.  
"Q-Quinn! I would have got you some coffee if I'd have known you were up."  
The blonde looked up and frowned at the Starbucks in my hand. "You know there's a coffee machine in the reception, right?"  
"No, actually, I didn't. Thank you."  
She nodded in acknowledgement, then went back to staring at her phone. I sat down on my bed so that I was facing her, and opened my mouth to speak, then closed it immediately when I realised that I didn't know what on earth to say to her. Renley had told me to think about what I was trying to say for at least 5 seconds before I start a conversation, because I usually tend to speak first and think later, which rarely ever ends well. For the second time in two days, I ignore this piece of advice.  
"Why do you work here if you hate everyone?"  
If Quinn was surprised by the outburst, she didn't show it. She just put her phone down beside her and raised an eyebrow at me. For a moment, we just sit in silence, daring each other to speak, but then Quinn pushes herself to her feet and grabs a pastel blue cardigan out of one of her draws.  
"Activities start today. Be in the main field by 9:30."  
Without waiting for my reply, she leaves the dorm. Groaning, I fall back onto my bed. _  
Smooth, Berry. Real smooth._

* * *

At 8:30, I woke Doc up. I expected him to be grumpy, but it turns out that Doc is quite the morning person, and practically jumped out of bed.  
"Come on, I've got something awesome to show you."  
Without warning, he was tugging me outside and over to what seemed to be the other end of the camp, to a huge lake. Tapping his lips with his index finger, he crept forward and pushed apart some of the long grass by the edge of the lake, and a small grey ball of fluff hopped out and started making loud chirping noises around his ankles.  
"What is that, a duck?" I crouch down to look at the tiny creature skipping around on the floor, jumping slightly when a second one joined it. Then a third.  
"A Warbler. God knows where their mom is, but Nate and I found them like this yesterday, so we're trying to look after them."  
"You can't just leave them here, they'll freeze! Take them back to the dorm!"  
"We can't. If someone tells the head of camp, hell will break loose."  
"Well we'll just have to make sure no-one tells then, won't we?"  
I lay my hand out carefully on the ground and one of the chicks hops over and begins to peck at it gently.  
"What do they eat?" I say picking the small grey blob up carefully and look over to Doc who is beaming at me with the other two chicks in his hands.  
"Nate said insects, but they also eat nuts and seeds and stuff, I think."  
We sneak back to our dorm room, careful not to let anyone see the tiny birds we are holding in our hands.  
"Oh my God," Nate gapes at us as we walk into the room and place the birds on Doc's bed. "You can't be serious? If they see them in here, we'll get killed. Go put them back."  
"Too late, Rachel's already named one. When you name an animal, you have to keep it. It's the rules," he grins up at the taller boy, who bites nervously at his lip.  
After a second, Nate gives in and drops down onto his knees to take a look at the birds.  
"You're sure their mom wasn't there?"  
"Positive."  
"Fine," Nate murmurs, scratching the back of the largest bird, "I call dibs on naming this one."  
Doc laughs, and inspects the remaining bird. "Is this a boy or a girl?"  
"They're all boys. The guys are brighter, and have orangey bits on their chest and head. Females have white bits on their tails."  
I frowned at the boy, wondering how anyone could possibly know that off the top of their head and Nate shrugs. "My dad's a park ranger. I sent him a picture of the birds and he told me what they were and some stuff about them. I'm gonna go get some food for them. Keep them safe and for God's sake, do not let anyone else see them."  
Doc and I nod along, still playing with the birds.  
"So what are you gonna call him?" Doc whispered to me as Nate left.  
I look the bird over as he nestles himself into the sheets on Doc's bed. "How about Tobias?"  
"Awesome. I think I might call this one Tevye."  
Laughing, I stood up straight. "We need somewhere to keep them while we're out."  
Doc frowned for a moment, before placing Tevye down on the bed and walking over to one of the chests of drawers at the other end of the room and pulling out one of the compartments.  
"We need to make it comfier." He looked around, then tapped the draw quickly and ran off into the bathroom, returning with several rolls of toilet paper. He tore them into small strips and stuffed them into the draw.  
"Ta da!" he exclaimed a few minutes later, leaning against the chest of draws.  
He scooped Tevye and the larger bird off the bed and placed them into the draw. I quickly followed his lead and placed Tobias down on the layers of paper. The birds pattered around in the draw, chirping quietly, and eventually settled down.  
Nate pushed his way into the room, carrying some small containers and a small bag of bird seed. And placed them on the bed.  
"Where'd the birds go?"  
Doc nodded down to the open draw, and Nate swooped around the bed to look down at them.  
"What are you going to call him?"  
"Denny," Nate replied, turning to grab the seeds and placed a large handful into the middle of the makeshift nest. Taking a dismissive glance at the food, the birds nestled comfortably into the soft paper.  
"Okay guys, we've all got to go soon, so we need you to stay quiet and please don't start stinking the place out," he muttered, slowly sliding the drawer shut.  
"Here, Doc, put the food and stuff in the drawers, too. I've gotta go talk to someone."  
Doc obliged, grabbing all of the small boxes and things, and placing them as quietly as he could into the different compartments.  
"Why do we still have two empty beds?" I asked, and Doc shrugged.  
"Sometimes people just don't show."  
I think back to the coach who had been stood on her own when I had been waiting for Quinn, and felt kind of bad. I begin to wonder if she had to be sent home, or was assigned another job while she was here, but my thoughts are interrupted by Doc nudging me gently in the shoulder.  
"We have to go now."  
Grabbing a sweater out of my draw, I followed Doc to a large field where everyone was paired up. Looking around, I see that Nate is stood in the centre of the field talking to a girl with curly red hair, but I can't see Quinn anywhere.  
"Can you see Quinn?" I ask Doc, who searches the crowd and shakes his head.  
"I'm going to go look for her."  
Pushing through the crowds of people proved much more difficult than I anticipated, and as a relatively small person, I was getting shoved around a lot. A cloud of smoke hit my face and I muttered something angrily as I tried to manoeuvre away from the smokers, but a hand clamped down on my shoulder.  
"What did you just say to me?"  
A large girl with black frizzy hair and thick eyeliner covering her eyes was glaring down at me.  
"I-I didn't!"  
She snickered and blew another wave of smoke into my face.  
"I'll teach you to mouth off about me, you dumb fag."  
The girl pushed me hard, and I landed on the floor, scraping my hands. I squeezed my eyes shut and covered my face, expecting pain to shoot through me from somewhere. But it didn't. Instead, I felt a soft tap at my shoulder, and saw Nate looking at me worriedly. He pulled me to my feet and brushed some of the dirt off me.  
"Are you okay?" he asked softly, and I nodded.  
I searched through the crowd for the girl, but couldn't find her.  
"What happened?"  
"Quinn took care of it," Doc muttered, joining me at the other side.  
I looked over to see Quinn arguing with an older member of staff.  
"You are a member of staff, Miss Fabray!"  
"Yes, and she was going to attack another of the members. I don't see Rosie getting told off for letting her student assault someone."  
"That isn't the point. You acted irrespons-"  
"Excuse me," I cut in, "please don't get mad at her, she was only trying to help me. That girl was going to hurt me."  
I widened my eyes, chewed on my bottom lip and willed myself to cry. It's a trick that I have been using ever since I was a child and almost always works. The man wavered slightly, then turned to Quinn.  
"Consider this a formal warning. I hear one more thing about you and I'm calling your father."  
He stormed off, and I wiped my eyes on my sleeve and glanced up at the blonde.  
"Thank you."  
"Not like I had a choice. You should learn to protect yourself."  
"Yeah, well. Where I'm from, people don't usually just attack you as you walk by them."  
Quinn rolled her eyes and nodded to the stage set up in the middle of the field.  
"Come on, our first task is getting read out in a moment."  
I followed the girl through the masses of people, and into the centre of the crowd. A microphone squealed a couple of minutes later, and I pushed up onto my tiptoes to see the speaker.  
"Welcome to your first official day here at St. Bruno's. If you read the brochure, you will know that you are given a series of tasks, aiming to get you to connect better with your coach, and to get you to widen your understanding and hopefully get you to grasp on to the idea that homosexuality is neither a choice, nor a "phase" or anything other misconceptions you have. Today, your task is quite simple: learn as much about each other as you can, and then you will be tested tomorrow. Anyone who gets below 70% will be redoing the quiz the day after and so on until you get that 70%. You have the rest of today and until 9:30 tomorrow to do this. Have fun!"  
The swarm of people dispersed much faster than they had the previous day, and soon Quinn and I were stood averting conversation by ourselves.  
"So…where do you want to go?"  
The blonde shrugged. "Auditorium?"

* * *

"How do you wanna start?" I asked, climbing the steps to the stage, and sitting down at the lip.  
Quinn sat beside me and furrowed her brow. "How about names. What's your middle name?"  
_"Barbra."_  
"Lucy."  
_"Do you have any pets?"  
_"I have a pug. You?"_  
"No. Well…I guess I have a Warbler."_  
"Uhh," Quinn paused, "favourite movie?"  
_"Funny Girl."_  
"V For Vendetta."  
"_Favourite food?"  
_"Bacon."  
"_Really, Quinn? Bacon?_"  
"You don't like bacon?" she asked incredulously, and I rolled my eyes.  
_"I'm a vegan."_  
"That's lame. You're missing out. What's your favourite food, then?"  
_"Salad."_  
"That's a lie. Nobody _likes_ salad. The just force themselves to eat it so they look healthy."  
_"You've clearly never had a good salad, then."_  
"And I'm almost certain that I never will."

* * *

As it turns out, learning about other people is kind of exhausting. It was 12:30pm when I got back to the dorm room, and I quickly checked on the Warblers (who were fast asleep and still hadn't eaten any of the seed), then hopped on my bed, plucking my phone out of the top draw and calling my papa.

_"Rachel?"  
"Hey pa! I just wanted to see how things were going."  
"Oh, they're great honey. Your dad's at the work at the moment, so I'm just watching TV. How's camp treating you?"  
"Yeah, it's actually not that bad. Most people are quite nice. Doc and Nate are really cool, and we found some Warbler chicks that didn't have a mom, so we're kind of…keeping them."  
"Is that even allowed?"  
"I'm not sure, but they're really cute. I'll send you a picture when they wake up."  
I can hear my papa laughing down the phone. "I'm glad you're having fun."  
"Me too."  
"Oh! Also, Renley and Blaine wanted you to call them. They said they tried to call you, but you didn't pick up."  
"Okay, thanks. I'll do that now. I'll call you soon. Love you."  
"Love you too."  
_Before I can find Blaine's number, Quinn pushes her way into the room, followed by a some familiar faces.  
"Rachel!" they shout, practically jumping on top of me.  
"Woah, guys I've only been gone for a day."  
"I'm in love," Blaine states.  
"And I'm hungry."  
I sit up, looking from one twin to the other, then flop back down on the bed, covering my face with a pillow.  
I hear Quinn laugh quietly before leaving the room. "Good luck, Berry."


End file.
